Guwahati: Writers from Northeast India have earned significant recognition at the 2025 Sahitya Akademi Awards, with five authors from the region among the distinguished recipients announced on Sunday. Among them, Assamese writer Devabrata Das won the award in the Assamese language for his novel Karhi Khelor Sadhu, which has been widely praised for its powerful narrative and depiction of social realities in Assam. In the Bodo category, noted writer Sahaisuli Brahma received the honour for the novel Dwngwni Lama Mwse Gwthwn, marking another milestone for Bodo literature.
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From Manipur, author Haobam Nalini was selected for the Manipuri language award for the short story collection Kanglamdriba Eephut, which explores the socio-cultural life of the state. In the Nepali category, Prakash Bhattarai, originally from Nepal and based in Sikkim, received the award for the essay collection Nepali Paramparik Sanskriti Ra Sabhyata Ko Dukuti, focusing on traditional Nepali culture and civilisation. The Sahitya Akademi annually honours books of outstanding literary merit published in languages recognised by the Akademi, with selections made by expert juries comprising eminent writers and scholars.
Among other major winners this year, Navtej Sarna won in English for the novel Crimson Spring, while Prasun Bandyopadhyay received the award in Bengali for the poetry collection Shreshtha Kabita. Awards were also conferred in several other Indian languages including Hindi, Gujarati, Kannada, Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu, Urdu, and Sanskrit. The prestigious Sahitya Akademi Award carries a copper plaque, shawl and a cash prize, and will be presented to the winners at a special ceremony organised by the Akademi.
